


Landing After a Freefall

by Silvials



Series: Tumblr Ficlets [2]
Category: Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-03
Updated: 2020-10-03
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:08:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26791903
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silvials/pseuds/Silvials
Summary: In which Laurent puts his own life at risk and can't understand why Damen is so pissed at him.
Relationships: Damen/Laurent (Captive Prince)
Series: Tumblr Ficlets [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2127039
Comments: 11
Kudos: 91





	Landing After a Freefall

It had started out as a good day.

They didn’t have any urgent matters to attend to, so Laurent had invited Damen to go for a ride with him. However, they made the mistake of taking a familiar path and riding unchaperoned, and it wasn’t until they were waylaid by a group of bandits at the outskirts of the forest did Laurent realize how foolish they had been.

Both Damen and Laurent were armed, but the bandits outnumbered them by three to one. Predictably, they didn’t perceive Laurent as a serious enough threat and instead focused most of their attention on Damen. The bandits revealed themselves to be former slave traders, and they threatened to kill Damen if he refused to lift the ban on slavery. It was obvious that Damen was planning to fight his way out, but with a sword against his neck and two more poised at his chest, there was no way he would make it out alive.

And so Laurent began to goad the bandits. He told them the laws against slavery were his idea, and that Damen was nothing but a puppet king who made decisions with his cock instead of his head. He insulted the Akielon culture and told them they were just as half-witted and barbaric as their king. His words incited a wave of patriotic rage among the bandits and earned him a nick in the neck from one of the slaver’s knife point.

The momentary shift in attention gave Damen a chance to break out of their hold, and he made quick work of dispatching the slavers before they could slit Laurent’s throat. Damen reached for Laurent instantly, and tilted his head up to inspect the wound. Once he saw it was just a scratch, the concern in his eyes was replaced by a look of cold fury.

“Why would you do that?” Damen growled with such intensity that it almost made Laurent take a step back.

“Don’t be so sensitive,” Laurent said, but he was unable to keep the shock from his tone. “I didn’t mean what I said.”

“I don’t care what you said,” Damen snapped at him. “Why would you put your life at risk like that?”

Laurent tried to mask his emotions with an air of nonchalance, but he found it difficult to school his expression. It’s been a while since he had to use those kinds of defenses against someone. “I was diverting attention away from you.”

“They had a knife to your throat!”

“And there were four men ready to run you through with their swords, in case you failed to notice.”

“What if I didn’t get to you in time? They would have cut you down, what then?”

Laurent didn’t know how to answer him, but he wasn’t about to apologize for saving Damen’s life. “I can take care of myself.”

Damen’s fists clenched at his sides, and Laurent instinctively tensed as he remembered the last time they argued this intensely at Ravenel.

Damen must have noticed his reaction. He took a step back, but kept his gaze trained on Laurent. “Do you truly not understand why I’m upset?”

“Perhaps you’re too proud? Too emotional?”

“No,” Damen said. It almost seemed like a sigh of defeat. “I don’t want to do this here.” Then he turned away and strode towards their horses.

Laurent wanted to argue, wanted to find reasons to insult Damen, but his throat closed up as he was overcome with a sudden sense of shame. He might not understand the source of Damen’s wrath, but he definitely didn’t deserve to be provoked any further.

They arrived at the palace with little fanfare, but when Laurent made for the direction of their apartments, Damen blocked his path. “You need to see Paschal.”

“It’s just a scratch.”

“It doesn’t matter.” Damen’s hand closed around Laurent’s wrist and began leading him to the infirmary. His grip wasn’t tight enough to bruise, but it was clear that he would not hesitate to drag Laurent if he were to refuse.

Damen left him with Paschal, and when Laurent asked where he was going, he simply said he needed time to clear his head. Laurent tried not to feel like a scolded child.

Damen didn’t come back to their chambers until nightfall, and as much as Laurent pretended it didn’t bother him, he couldn’t get any work done because Damen’s absence felt so jarring.

They simply regarded each other for a moment, Laurent from his place on the desk while Damen was leaning against the doorway. Laurent didn’t plan on being the first to speak, but the words slipped out on their own accord. “I’m sorry.”

This seemed to unravel something in Damen. The tension visibly drained from his shoulders and he crossed the distance between them to take Laurent into his arms. “I’m sorry as well. I shouldn’t have snapped at you, especially after what happened.”

“I’ve had worse,” Laurent said, thinking of his uncle’s assassination attempts. The events today would not have shaken him if it wasn’t for Damen’s anger.

“You frightened me,” Damen admitted. He pulled away from Laurent’s embrace, but kept him at arm’s length so he could look him in the eye. “Why do you treat your life like a bargaining chip?”

“I didn’t want to see you hurt,” Laurent said easily.

Damen’s grip on him tightened, and a hint of sadness flitted across his expression. “Did it occur to you that it would have hurt me more if something were to happen to you?”

The realization shouldn’t have come as such a surprise, but it’s been so long since he had anyone who truly cared for him. His guards protected him out of loyalty. His uncle spent more time plotting his demise than worrying for his safety, and the council had only ever felt disappointment towards their supposedly spoiled prince.

Laurent must have taken too long to respond because Damen frowned at him. “Laurent, you are precious to me,” he said slowly, as if he was making sure his words were understood. “What you did today reminded me far too much of what happened at Kingsmeet, and I can’t bear to lose you that way again.”

“I’m sorry,” Laurent repeated. His heart clenched at the open devastation on Damen’s face, but he couldn’t make a promise to never do it again. “You are also very dear to me, and I will do everything in my power to make sure no harm comes to you.”

“It doesn’t always have to come to that.”

“Don’t act like you wouldn’t do the same.”

“I would gladly,” Damen agreed. “But only if it was my last resort. I’d find another way to protect you, one that doesn’t require a sacrifice that would only hurt you more.”

Laurent shook his head. “You can’t possibly guarantee that.”

“I found another way before, didn’t I?”

“I wish I shared your optimism.”

Damen sighed and took both Laurent’s hands in his own. “I know you cannot promise me anything, but the nest time you decide to do something so rash, just remember you are no longer alone.”

“I know.”

“Do you? Sometimes, I feel like you still need to be reminded.”

“Remind me then,” Laurent said. It was meant to be an invitation; but he sounded a little too weary.

Damen planted a chaste kiss on his lips and another on his forehead, and then he tugged at his hands and guided him to their bed. Damen settled onto it first and pulled Laurent down next to him, but instead of undressing him, he circled his arms around Laurent’s waist and simply held him.

Laurent allowed himself to relax, resting his head on Damen’s chest so he could listen to his heartbeat. He had never doubted Damen’s love for him, but this was perhaps the first time he finally processed how much he meant to Damen.

**Author's Note:**

> This was a self-indulgent fic idea that came to me when I really should have been working on my university papers, but my hand slipped and I ended up writing this instead. 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed reading! Your comments and kudos are highly appreciated.
> 
> Also feel free to drop by and say hi on [Tumblr](http://silvials.tumblr.com/). I have more Capri ficlets there.


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